Container and closure therefor



May 5, 1953 w. M. VOGEL, JR

-CONTAINER AND CLOSURE THEREFOR Filed Feb. 29, 1952 INVENTOR W/LL/AM- MART/N V06EL,J/?

ATTORNEYS Patented May 5, 1953 ES QIE FlfCiETi I memos: conrnusnmvn oposuns; THEREFOR William Martin yum, Jr.,,- newsm n- .1.. as-

signal: to; Standard Container-flue Rinckeway,

N.- 'J,, a- ..cornoration of New-Jersep Applicationllebruarr 29, 1952;.SeriarNo.274105 My invention-relates" tea protectivemetalv con.-

tainer' and associatedclosuremeans: for. awsleeping' bagwhich has special advantages for.:use in conneotionwitha survival: kit. for. military" typ high. speed aircrafti Space -in*-the pilot enclosure "of high-speed military type aircraft is at, an absolute premium because of airframe designlimitations, the multitude of operation mechanisms "and: {equipment necessary for'protectio'n of the pilot." Indeed. restriction of available space is so great thatthere is very-little flexibility for accommodatin varis ations inphysical stature; -from-=-the arbitrary mean'pilotsize. Consequentlyy any variation in the size of equipment manufactured or use by the pilot may have a :serious: eife'ct onrthe; em ciency and comfort of: the ilot:

One ofthe standard Pieces offsafetyequipment iorusein militaryaviation i's'a suryiva-lkit'which includes" a: great *manyikarticles"ranging from small articles such as fishing tackle to largeand bulky article'srsuch as a shovel, a collapsible carbineand a sleeping bag. Packin'eall ofthisgdiver'se equipment in" a mannereconomical of, space and conformable toother equipment items-has created a problem which has been handled inithe past by enclosing the bulky sleeping begin a protective metalcontainer around which are packed the remaining articles to form-a kit which is lod. t ..pint..betwe.enthe.seat typ parwhute and the cushion upon which-the pilot sits. It has been thought necessary to provide an oblong container of 6" x 9" x 6" for the sleeping bag to accommodate its bulk and to provide tolerance for variations in its size and-shape when folded. The inflexible height of the container has proved disadvantageous in use, since it reduces" the amount of available headroom for the pilot. .Also

the conventional double seamed construction does not allow for change of pressure at high altitudes so that the can tends to expand and produce the cockpit squeeze familiar to taller pilots. The bulk of the can is not justified by any useful function that it might serve beyond serving as a container for the sleeping bag. In addition, the effectiveness of the survival kit has been reduced by the nature of the tear-strip typeopenings for this metal container, since the keysare apt to be lost or broken in use.

I have now devised a metal container which by reason of its design is capable of containing the sleeping bag in the form of a shallow space saving pack and which by reason of its construc tion and that of the cooperating closure means provides sufficient flexibility in height adjustability'to accommodate production line, variations in packaging bulk. The. conta'inen-of my invention employs a shaliow' rectangular "open-top drawn shell or the: proximate dimensional-area ofa seat-pack parachute-L e., about 14" 14,15": The heightof" the shell is; suflicient to "contain the-packaged sle'epingbag and preferably is about 2 inches; The --shell is' slotted at different height levels near the upper edge ofeach or two opposite side-walls; Aclosureplate advanta geously reinforced by diagonal embossin'gs; eo-opcrates with the slotted shell'of the containerto provide a firm but: readily releasable closure means which is sufiiciently flexible and suffi'c'ient-'- ly adjustable' with respect" to the height of-i-the containers contents for maximum "economy in space, -compressibility in service and efificiency in packaging. Intheclosed position; a spring wire closure "means i ispassed-.2 through one pair of slotted openings in; the upper portion of"- one side walliof-thc containershell'and is passed over-the closure plate and through'an oppositely disposed pair. of slotted openings in. the wall ofthe containershelll In its preferred form, my invention contemplates: a container shell which has. been slotted at difierent height levels to provide for variations in the. height: of: the, container constentse According. to a particularly advantageous application; of myinvention, :the closure plateis also designedto serve as a hand: shoveland thus the. containers top or closure plate: is. able to replacaone of? the: essential bulky? articles of the standard survive-1e kit. For; ::this--. "purpose. .1 the closure plate is provided with an elongated opening suitable for gripping with the hand. In construction, the container and closure plate are provided with rounded side corners and bottom edges. g

My novel protective metal container provides many advantages over those of the prior art. The length and width of the container approximate those of a seat-pack parachute and allow for more compact packing of the evacuated protective plastic sleeve containing the sleeping bag.

,- The 50 per cent reduction in height of my container creates valuable space in the pilots enclosure and the flexibility in height adjustability provided by the slotted openings at different height levels of the container shell may create additional valuable space. The container assembly is readily opened by compressing and withdrawing the spring wire closure' means and requires no extraneous opening devices. In ad+ dition, all three elements of the container assembly are useful to the pilot after the container has f "has outwardly flared ends. :spring wire retinned for protection.

The metal container of my invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawing in which Figure 1 represents a plan view of the assembled container shell, closure plate, and spring wire closure means. Figure 2 represents a partial section of Figure 1 taken along line 22. Figure 3 shows the spring wire closure means in expanded position. Figure 4 represents a partial section of Figure 1 taken along line 4-4 and Figures 5 and 6 represent sections of the closure plate taken along lines 55 and 6-45 respectively. I

Container shell I, as shownin Figures 1, 2 and 4, is a rectangular open top draw can 14" x 15" x 2%" (all inside measurements) having outside hemmed top edges 2. Shell I has rounded corners 3 and rounded bottom edges 4. The shell has pairs of slotted openings 5 about 6" by centeredrespectively and 7 from the top of the container shell and 4%" from the side walls in each of two opposite side walls of the shell. Container shell I is advantageously made from 135 pound commercial tin plate of 0.014"

thickness. I

Closure plate 6 of slightly smaller overall dimensional area than container shell I (13% x 14%") and having rounded corners to conform=to those of the container shell is made from hotrolled carbon steel, pickledand oiled, of 0.031 thickness. Closure'plate Sis-reinforced by diagonal embossings 1 shown in more detail in Figures 5 and 6. Closure plate 6 is also provided with an elongated opening 8 about 1%" by 5" centered mid-way between the side edges of the closure plate and about 2%" from the top thereof. Opening 8 also has about hemmed edges 9. In order to provide a suitable handle,

closure plate 6* is further provided with a /4" hemmed top edge about 7 long centeredmidzway; between the sides of closure plate 6.

Spring wire closure means I l is of U shape and It is made of 0.125"

I claim:

1. A metal container which comprises a seamless open-top, shallow, rectangular shell, at least one pair of slotted openings in each of two opposite side walls of the shells, a closure plate of slightly smaller overall dimensional area than the container shell, and a U-shaped spring wire equipped with outwardly flared ends which is capable of compression and extension inwardly through a pair of slotted openings in one side wall of the container shell across the upper surface of the closure plate and outwardly through a pair of slots in the opposite side wall of the container shell.

2. A metal container which comprises a seamless open-top, shallow rectangular shell, at least .one pair of slotted openings in each of two opposite side walls of the shell, a closure plate of slightly smaller overall dimensional area than the container shell, an elongated opening situated near'the top of the closure plate to provide a handletherefor, and a U-shaped spring wire equipped with outwardly flared ends which is capable of compression and extension inwardly through a pair of slotted openings in one side wall of the container shell across the upper surface of the closure plate and outwardly through a pair of slots in the opposite side wall of the container shell.

3. A metal container which comprises a seamless open-top, shallow, rectangular shell having hemmed top edges, two pairs or" slotted openings at varying height level near the top of .each of two opposite side walls of the shell, a closure plate of slightly smaller overall dimensional area thanthe container shell, diagonal embossings on the closure plate, an elongated opening having hemmed edges situated near the hemmed top edge of and centrally located in the closure plate to provide a handle therefor, and a U -shaped spring. wire equipped with outwardly flared ends whichxis capable of compression and extension inwardly through'a pair of slotted openings in one side wall of the container shell across the upper surface of the closure plate and outwardly through a pair of .slots in the opposite side wall of the container shell.

, No references cited. 

